RPC to hold 2015 Esperanza in Hyatt Regency Houston, allows ticket resales

10/15/15 6:19am

The Rice Program Council will hold Esperanza, its annual fall formal, on Nov. 14 in the downtown Hyatt Regency Houston hotel. Themed a “Night at Skyfall,” the dance has 1600 tickets — slightly less than last year’s eventual 1700, but at the same price of $20 — and will feature student DJ Josh Masimore.

RPC External Vice President Jodie Nghiem said RPC faced constraints in finding an appropriately-sized venue within their budget, which stands at $40,000 for the entire event. According to Nghiem, $6,250 of that comes from Blanket Tax (12% of RPC’s total $52,100), and the remainder from ticket sales.

“We are using this blank slate venue as an opportunity to showcase our DJ, casino games and other attractions,” Nghiem, a McMurtry College junior, said. “The cost of Esperanza this year is on par with that of other years.”

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Jones College sophomore Shaian Mohammadian, who plans on attending, said that although this year’s location lacks the novelty of last year’s Houston Museum of Natural Science, he remains excited.

“[The hotel] will give the event more of a school dance feel, which will make it less unique but more conducive to dancing and all that,” Mohammadian said. “The venue last year was super unique for an event like Esperanza, which was really cool … but it wasn’t very conducive to hearing the music.”

RPC will allow ticket resales this year after attempting to curb the practice last year, citing that forcing students to go through RPC proved too inconvenient. Refunds, however, will no longer be allowed.

“We believe that by increasing the number of tickets [initially] available this year from 1200 to 1600, it will be difficult for students to resell their tickets for higher than face value,” Nghiem said. “We are allowing the direct resale of tickets between students in the place of refunds … [since refunds] posed a logistical inconvenience for both students and RPC.”

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